Sliding gate



3 Sheets-Sheet 1. W. H. COX. SLIDING GATE.

(No Model.)

Patented Jan. 27, 1891.

3 Sheets-S11eet 2. H. COX. SLIDING GATE.

(No Model.)

Patented Jan. 27,

(No Model.) a Sheets-Sheet 3.

W. H. COX.

SLIDING GATE.

No. 445,163. Patented Jan. 27,- 1891.

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UNITED STATES PATENT Grates.

IVILLIAM II. COX, OF VIRDEN, ILLINOIS.

' SLIDING GATE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 445,163, dated January2'7, 1891.

Application filed July 5, 1890. Serial No. 357,855. No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that 1, WILLIAM H. COX, a citizen of the United States,residing at Virden, in the county of lvlacoupin and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sliding Gates; andI do hereby declare the following to be af'ull, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improvement in that class of sliding gatesknown as lever openers, and more particularly in that species of suchclass in which a downward pull upon the free ends of theoperating-levers acts both to open and to close the gate, and hencenecessitates the provision of suitable reversing mechanism.

The object sought to be accomplished by my improvedconstruction is toproduce more sure, positive, and easily-operating reversing devices thanhave heretofore been known in the art, and also to effect an arrangementof parts whereby the gate is opened and closed in a more convenientmanner than heretofore, and the exertion and labor in so doing greatlydiminished.

A still further object is to provide an im proved clutch or grip whichwill take a sure hold on the gate to move it in one direction and slidefreely back to get a new purchase, and also one so constructed that thegate will run freely an d smoothlythrough when opened directly by handwithout the use of the operating-levers.

lVith these ends in view myinvention consists in certain peculiaritiesof construction and combinations of parts, more fully describedhereinafter, and pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a sideelevation of my gate shown in closed position, dotted lines representingits open position; Fig. 2, a similar view showing the parts in theposition they assume when one of the levers is pulled down to open thegate and the front clutch is gripping the rail to throw back the latter;Fig. 3, a front end view with the gate open; Figs. 4, 5, and 6, detailviews illustrating the mechanism for shifting the parts to reverse theaction of the lever, and Figs. 7 and 8 dctails of the clutch or grip.

In carrying out my invention I employ a suitable supporting frame orstandard consisting of the upright posts 2 and 3 and the top and bottomcross-pieces l and 6,-and along beside this frame slides the gate 7,which is of ordinary construction and operates on suitable groovedrollers S, mounted on bearings rigidly secured to and projecting fromthe posts 2 and 3, and is guided at its bottom by projections 9 from thebases of said posts.

Alongside one rail of the gate I arrange a supplemental strip ll, whichextends the full length of the gate, and is set off slightly therefromby means of blocks 12, inserted at suitable intervals, and this stripserves as a bar on which the clutches take hold to shift the gate. Apair of diverging vibrating levers 13 and 11 are pivoted independentlyof each other to the middle of the sillorbottom crosspiece 6 of theframe and extend to the supplemental strip 11. From their lower endsextend arms 15, rigidly secured to them and lying along the uppersurface of the sill (i, forming with the parts 13 and 11 bell-cranklevers, the office of which will be explained hereinafter. Short strips10 are secured to the outside surfaces of the arms 15 and are fitted onthe pivots of the levers to guide the latter in their movements and keepthem in proper adjustment, and brace-rods 17 connect the arms of thebell-crank levers to strengthen them.

As before stated, the arms 13 and ll of the bell-crank levers extend tothe strip 11, and to their upper ends are connected the clutches orgrips for taking hold on the gate to operate it. These clutches areconstructed alike, and each consists of a pair of rectangular boxes orbands 18 and 19, surrounding the bar 11, and a connecting strip or arm20. These bands or boxes are left open on their inner sides to allow ofthe passage of the blocks 19, and the arm 20 is rigid with the rear band18 and pivotally connected to the forward one 19 by means of suitablelugs 21, projecting from the front side of the latter, correspondinglugs 22 on the arm fitting between said lugs 21 and a pivot-pin 23extending transversely through all these lugs.

The bands 18 and 19 loosely surround the bar 11, and are connected tothe lever 13 by a rod 24, pivoted at its opposite ends to the upper endof said lever and the center of the connecting-arm 29, respectively. Nowit will be seen that upon drawing back the rod 24 the rear band 18 willslide on the bar 11, being rigidly secured to the arm but the forwardband 19 is pivotally connected to this arm at the center of its frontside, and hence the rearward movement of the arm 20 will pull back thisfront side and throw forward the back portion of the band, thus causingthe latter to bind upon the bar 11 and grip the same as long as thedraft is maintained on the rod 24. It is obvious that when this draft isremoved the bar will slide freely back through the clutch; but it isalso necessary that it should slide as freely forward through it whenclosing the gate, and to this end I provide a stop 25, projecting fromthe post 2 and having a bifurcated end inclosing the strip 11, and onthe top and bottom bars of the band .19 are formed lugs or projections26, which fit against said stop when the clutch is in its normalposition, and thus hold the band square and prevent it from binding onthe bar 11 when the gate slides shut.

The opposite grip for closing the gate is arranged similarly to theopening one, but of course is reversed, the rear band being the pivotalone and having projections fitting against a stop on the post 3. Itwillthus be evident that the strip will slide freely back and forththrough the two clutches in opening and closing the gate directly byhand without the use of the levers when the latter are in their normalpositions, as shown in Fig. 1, with the horizontal arms of thebell-crank levers resting on the sill 6. The free ends of thesehorizontal arms are pivotally attached to long rods 27 and 28, whichconverge toward their upper ends, crossing the levers 13 and 14 andextending up along the side of the cross-piece 4, being confined andguided by a strip 29, secured along said cross-piece 4, but separatedtherefrom by blocks 30 at its opposite ends and middle. The blocks atthe middle contain between them, and act as guides for, a verticalsliding bar or strip 31, which extends down between the rods 27and28,being provided at its lower end with a stop 32 to prevent itsaccidental removal from between the strip 29 and cross-piece 4, and itis also provided on its upper end, above the'ends of the rods 27 and 28,with a weight 33 to cause it to drop quickly when released from anelevated position.

A plate 34 is fastened on the face of the bar 31, between the weight 33and strip 29, and the sides of this plate project beyond the edges ofthe bar and are provided with recesses or depressions 35 of like formand similarly located. The preferred form of these depressions is thatof an oval aperture having an open front, so that the depression willform a socket below said opening, as seen more clearly in Fig. 4. Theupper ends of the rods 27 and 28 come in front of these openings, andthey are bent at right angles to form catches 36, arranged to drop intothe depressions 35.

Back of the vertical bar 31 is secured a bolster 37, which is supportedby the cross-piece 4 and a re-enforcing strip 5, and through thisbolster, at its center, extends transversely a short rock-shaft 38, onthe forward end of which, between the strip 31 and the bolster, isrigidly fastened at its center a rocking arm or lever 39, on theopposite ends of which are formed lugs or pins 40, projecting beneaththe upper ends of the rods 27 and 28,respectively. The rear end of therock-shaft 38 projects beyond the bolster, and on it is loosely mounteda shifting arm or vane 41, which operates in a suitable chamber ordepression made in said bolster and in the re-enforcing strip 5, and isconfined on the rock-shaft by a linchpin 42. This linchpin is ofconsiderable length and extends down along the surface of the vane orarm between a pair of lugs 43, projecting from the latter. Hence it willbe seen that the shifting of the vane will cause its lugs to strike thelinchpin and thus turn the rockshaft and the lever or arm on its outerend.

As previously stated, the projecting pins on the opposite ends of thisrocking arm extend beneath the slanting rods 27 and 28, and it .has alsobeen set forth that the catches or bent ends of these rods come in frontof the opening in the plate of the vertical sliding bar. Cross notchesor depressions 44 are also made in the guide-strip 29 and crosspiece 4,into which the pins drop and allow the rodcatches to fall into thedepressions 35; but it will be evident that while one pin has droppedinto its slot and the rod is engaging the. depression in the plate, theother end of the rocking lever will be elevated, and the pin on this endwill thus be holding the end of the other rod in raised position clearof the plate 34.

At the opposite'ends of the gate on the top rail raised vertical pieces45 are provided, and from their side faces project studs or pins 46,which are adapted to come in contact with the vane 41 to throw it backand forth.

The operating-levers and supports for the same are arranged as follows:The main post 2 extends above the gate high enough to support thecross-arm 10, which is arranged at right angles to said post and to thegate and is supported by the braces 47. The operating-levers consist oflong rods 48, having their fulcrums on the opposite ends of the crossarm10 in suitable castings 49, removably fitting in sockets in said arm andconfined by buttons 50. The lower ends of these rods are provided witheyes 51,w11ich fit on the downwardly-bent hooks 52, secured in the upperend of the vertical slide-bar 31 on the opposite sides of the same. Itwill thus be seen that the levers diverge, as they are fulcrumedon theends of the arm-bar, and they are extended out over'the middle of 'theroadway,

being there provided with suitable depending cords 53 tobe grasped inthe hand and pulled down to operate the levers. The levers extend on anupward slant, as well as away from each other, so that a good purchasecan be obtained for elevating the vertical slide-bar. Stops 54 areformed on the rods 27 and 28 to limit their movement, and hence that ofthe levers, by coming in contact with the under side of the uppercross-piece 4. The gate itself is also provided with steps 55 at itsopposite ends, which abut against the opposite ends of the re-enforcingpiece 5 in the back of the strip 4, and thus limit the movement of thegate. 7

The preferred construction of my device having been set forth, I willnow proceed to describe its operation. The cords on the ends of thelevers depend over the center of the roadway, so that they can bereadily manipulated without the necessity of driving to the side of theroad,and upon pulling down upon either one or the other the inner orlower end of the lever will of course be elevated and will pull up withit the vertical slide-bar31. Now with the gate in the closed positionshown in Fig. 1, the shifting-vane will be thrown forward, andconsequently the forward lug on the rocking bar 39 will have droppedinto its depression in the guide-strip, and hence the catch on the endof the rod 27 will be engaging the front depression in the plate on theslide-bar, while the opposite end of said rocking bar Will be inelevated position with its lug holding the rear rod 28 free of the plateand its depression. Therefore when the slidebar is pulled up by thehand-lever, it carries with it the rod 27, which, being connected to thefree end of the lower arm of the front bell-crank lever, elevates saidarm and throws back the lever 13. The upper end of this lever isconnected to the clutch and the latter will grip the strip 11, aspreviously explained, when the lever is thrown back and thus pull backthe gate to the position shown in Fig. 2. The impetus given the latterby this action of the levers and clutch will carry it through theclutches and all the way open. In the meantime, however, after thebell-crank lever has reached the limit of its stroke, the handlever isreleased and the weight of the upper end of the slide-bar causes it todrop quickly to its former position. The catch on the rod 27 is stillcontained within the depression of the plate, so that the bell-cranklever will be thrown forward to its initial position, while the clutchslides back on the .bar; but as the gate reaches the limit of itsrearward movement the pin 46 of the forward raised piece 45 on the gatestrikes the vane 41 and throws it to the position shown in dotted linesin Fig. 1. This, it will be seen, shifts the rocking arm 39 and throwsits front end up, free ing the rod 27 from the plate 34 and at the sametime allowing the catch on the opposite rod 28 to drop into the oppositedepression of the plate by reason of the pin 40 on its op posite end,which has been holding it free of the plate,dropping into thecross-notch 44. Now a downward pull upon the opposite hand-lever (orupon the same lever) will cause the vertical slide-bar to pull up withit the rear rod 28, and thus actuate, through the medium of the rearbell-crank lever, the rear clutch, which will grip the strip 11, andthus slide the gate shut in the same manner that the opposite clutchpulled it open. As the gate reaches its closed position the projectionfrom the rear raised piece 45 strikes it again and again throws it tothe forward position, (shown in full lines in Fig. 1,) and the rockingbar is shifted, throwing the rod 28 clear of the plate and allowing thecatch on the rod 27 to drop again into the depression on the front sideof said plate. hand-lever is not strong enough to throw the gate all theway open or closed, the slide-bar can be dropped and a new purchase ofthe clutch on the strip be secured, as the rod is If the pull on the notthrown from engagement with the plate until the gate reaches full openand closed position.

It will be readily seen that the gate can be freely slid back and forthindependent of the operating mechanism, if desired, without affectingthe latter, exceptbyshifting the vane. Thus I produce an automaticreversing mechanism which is sure and positive in its operation,and alsoa strong and durable arrangement for opening and closing the gate.

It is evident that many slight changeswhich might suggest themselves toa skilled mechanic could be resorted to without departing from thespirit and scope of my invention, and hence I do not wish to limitmyself to the precise construction herein shown.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, slidingclutches connected to the same and adapted to automatically grip thegate, means, substantially as described, for operating said levers, andshifting mechanism for automatically transferring the action from onelever to the other, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, clutchesconnected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate, avertical slide-bar, mechanism for operating the same, suitableconnections between said bar and the vibrating levers, and mechanism foralternately disconnecting the bar from the levers, substantially as andfor the purpose described.

3. The combination of the gate, a pair of bell-crank levers, slidingclutches connected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate,a vertical slide'bar, mechanism for operating the same, rods connectingsaid levers and said slide-bar, and mechanism foralternatelydisconnecting said rods from said bar, as and for the purposeset forth.

4. The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, clutchesconnected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate, avertical slide-bar, mechanism for operating the same, rods connected tosaid vibrating levers and adapted to engage said bar, and a rocking armarranged to throw said rods alternately in and out of engagement withsaid slide-bar, substantially as and for the purpose described.

5. The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, clutchesconnected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate, avertical slide-bar, mechanism for operating the same, rods connected tosaid vibrating levers and adapted to engage said bar, arocking lever forthrowing said rods alternately in and out of engagement with saidslide-bar, and a shifting arm or vane connected to said rocking leverand operated by means of pro ections on the gate, substantially asdescribed.

6. The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, clutchesconnected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate, avertical slide-bar, a plate on the same having depressions in itsopposite sides, mechanism for operating said slide, rods connected. tosaid levers and having catches at their upper end arranged to engage thedepressions in said slide-bar plate, a rocking lever adapted to engagesaid rods to alternately free the catches from the depressions in theplate, a shifting arm or vane for operating said rocking lever, andproject-ions on the gate arranged to shift said vane, substantially asdescribed.

7, The combination of the gate, a pair of vibrating levers, clutchesconnected thereto and arranged to automatically grip the gate, avertical slide-bar, levers connected to the upper end of the same andextending out over the roadway, having fulcrums on a suitable cross-arm,rods connected to said vibrating levers, and mechanism for causing saidrods to alternately engage said vertical slidebar, substantially'asand'tor the purpose de-- scribed.

8. The combination of the gate, a vibrating lever, a clutch consistingof a sliding band operating on a strip forming part of the gate,suitable connections between said clutch and said vibrating lever,whereby the former is caused to bind upon and grip said strip, andmechanism for operating the lever, substantially as described.

9. The combination of the gate, a vibrating lever, a clutch consistingof a pair of slides operating on a strip forming part of the gate, and aconnecting arm or bar rigidly secured to oneslide and pivotallyconnected to the other, a rod connecting said clutch and said vibratinglever, and mechanism for operating said lever, substantially asdescribed.

10. The combination of a gate, a vibrating lever, a clutch arranged on astrip forming part of the gate, and consisting of a pair of encirclingbands or boxes and an arm or bar connecting them,being rigidly securedto one band and pivotally connected to the other, a rodconnecting saidarm and the vibrating lever, and mechanism for operating the latter,substantially as described.

11. The combination, with the gate, of a pair of vibrating levers,clutches operating on a strip forming part of the gate, and eachconsisting of a pair of sliding bands connected by an arm rigidlysecured to one band and pivotally connected to the other, rodsconnecting said clutches and said vibrating levers, mechanism foroperating the latter, and stops against which the pivotal portions ofsaid clutches abut to prevent them from binding on the strip when in,their normal positions, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof IaffiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM HHCOX. Witnesses:

GEO. J. PATTISON, G. J. PATTIsoN, Jr.

